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Podcasts Education Catholic Reboot The Just Shall Stand with Great Constancy - Morning Episode

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Speak Lord for your Servant is Listening

Book Recommendation of the Day
Saint Pancras of Rome: The Supernatural Strength of a Young Christian, which delves into his life and the profound impact of his faith. This book offers insights into his steadfast commitment to Catholicism and the inspiration he provides to believers today.
Before I get into this morning episode I want to speak about Restoring the Faith and our duty to provide traditional catholic education for our grandchildren. My childhood school St Williams on Chicago’s northwest side has closed after 100 years.
In the heart of every Catholic soul lies a duty a mission passed down through the centuries from the Apostles themselves to teach, to form, and to protect the faith. Today, that mission stands threatened not by outside persecution alone, but by abandonment within. Across our major cities, the once-thriving Catholic parochial schools once the pride of immigrant communities, bastions of truth, virtue, and discipline are shuttered, sold off, or transformed beyond recognition.
What happened?
We forgot that Catholic education is not optional. It is a sacred duty. We believed the lie that someone else would carry the torch. Many dioceses, burdened by bureaucracy, scandal, and compromise, have relinquished their responsibility to form souls in the full truth of the Faith. The so-called Catholic schools that remain often promote a watered-down curriculum heavy on social justice jargon and light on doctrine, prayer, or sacramental preparation. The faith of our forefathers has been traded for relevance, and our children are the ones who pay the price.
But this tragedy is not irreversible. The responsibility now falls to us, the laity, to rebuild what has been abandoned. We must act not with despair, but with resolve, for this is the time of the remnant. We must recognize that forming the minds and souls of our grandchildren is not just an option it is our obligation.
Our forefathers built parishes and schools with nickels and dimes, brick by brick, because they believed in eternity. They understood that to know Christ is life, and to raise children without Him is a crime of negligence. We must have that same spirit again.
Retired Catholics especially must examine their priorities. The question must be asked plainly: Are we more concerned with comfort than with Christ? Leisure is not our final end salvation is. And if the faith is not passed down to our grandchildren, if their minds are shaped by secularism and relativism, how will they ever hear the voice of the Good Shepherd? How will they find the narrow path?
This is the time for sacrifice not just financial, but spiritual and personal. We need retired Catholics who will teach, volunteer, mentor, and give not just from their wallets, but from their hearts. We need those who remember the real Catholic schools where the Baltimore Catechism was memorized, daily Mass was expected, and the fear of the Lord was the beginning of wisdom to rise up and build again.
We don’t need permission from the chancery to do this. We need conviction. We need parents, grandparents, tradesmen, professionals, clergy, and consecrated religious to come together and establish new centers of formation rooted in tradition schools where Latin is prayed, the Catechism is taught with clarity, and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the very heartbeat of the community.
This will take perseverance. It will take prayer and planning. It will take money and sweat. But we must remember our mission here on earth: to restore all things in Christ. If we do not pass the Faith on in its fullness, then we have failed in the greatest duty given to us by God. We cannot stand before Him and say, “I was too tired, too old, too busy, or too afraid.”
Let us rise up, then not as victims of a collapsing system, but as soldiers of Christ the King. The Church has always flourished in persecution. Let it now flourish in our fidelity. Let us give our grandchildren the gift of eternal truth. Let us raise up saints.
Saints Known for Building Schools and Churches
1. St. John Bosco (1815–1888)
• Legacy: Founded the Salesians of Don Bosco.
• Accomplishments: Built hundreds of schools, technical institutes, and homes for boys across Europe, especially in Italy.
• Mission: Focused on catechesis, discipline, and trades education for the poor and abandoned.

2. St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle (1651–1719)
• Legacy: Founder of the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools.
• Accomplishments: Created an organized system of Catholic education for poor boys in France, training teachers and establishing tuition-free schools.
• Impact: Regarded as the patron saint of teachers.
3. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774–1821)
• Legacy: First native-born American saint.
• Accomplishments: Founded the first Catholic parochial school in the United States and the Sisters of Charity, who went on to establish schools throughout the U.S.
• Impact: Known as the Mother of the American Catholic School System.
4. St. Katharine Drexel (1858–1955)
• Legacy: American heiress turned religious sister.
• Accomplishments: Founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament and used her wealth to fund and build over 60 schools and missions for Native Americans and African Americans.
• Notable Foundation: Xavier University of Louisiana.
5. St. Patrick (c. 385–461)
• Legacy: Apostle of Ireland.
• Accomplishments: Established churches, schools, and monasteries across Ireland, laying the foundation for the Christianization of the nation.
• Method: Used monastic schools as centers of both religious and academic education.
6. St. Dominic (1170–1221)
• Legacy: Founder of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans).
• Accomplishments: Focused on the formation of preachers and teachers. Established study centers that would evolve into some of Europe’s great universities.
7. St. Benedict of Nursia (c. 480–547)
• Legacy: Father of Western Monasticism.
• Accomplishments: Built monasteries with schools for boys throughout Europe, particularly at Monte Cassino.
• Impact: Benedictine monastic schools preserved the Faith and learning through the Dark Ages.
8. St. Francis Xavier (1506–1552)
• Legacy: One of the first Jesuit missionaries.
• Accomplishments: Built churches and schools throughout India, Japan, and Southeast Asia.
• Impact: Combined evangelization with education in a missionary context.
9. St. Rose Philippine Duchesne (1769–1852)
• Legacy: Brought the Society of the Sacred Heart to America.
• Accomplishments: Built schools for girls in the American frontier, including among Native American tribes.
10. St. Charles Borromeo (1538–1584)
• Legacy: Key figure of the Counter-Reformation.
• Accomplishments: Built seminaries, schools, and parishes throughout Milan.
• Impact: Reformed clergy education and made parish schools widely available.
11. St. Paul of the Cross (1694–1775)
• Legacy: Founder of the Passionists.
• Accomplishments: In addition to retreat centers, his religious community established churches and preached missions that often led to the building of schools.
12. St. Joseph Calasanz (1557–1648)
• Legacy: Founded the Piarists (Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools).
• Accomplishments: Built the first tuition-free public Catholic school system in Europe.
• Motto: “Piety and Letters.”
As Pope St. Pius X said, “The greatest obstacle in the apostolate of the Church is the cowardice and indifference of the faithful.” Let us no longer be indifferent. Let us be bold. Let us build.
Now for our episode today titled “The Just Shall Stand with Great Constancy”
Sharon: Today is Monday after the Third Sunday after Easter, and we turn to the ancient liturgy and the wisdom of the saints to guide our way.
Epistle: Wisdom 5:1-5
"Then shall the just stand with great constancy against those that have afflicted them… These seeing it, shall be troubled with terrible fear, and shall be amazed at the suddenness of their unexpected salvation… Saying within themselves, repenting, and groaning for anguish of spirit: These are they, whom we had sometime in derision and for a parable of reproach. We fools esteemed their life madness, and their end without honour. Behold how they are numbered among the children of God, and their lot is among the saints."
Epistle Reflection: The Vindication of the Just
In today’s Epistle from the Book of Wisdom, we see one of the clearest Old Testament foreshadowings of the resurrection and eternal reward of the just. The wicked, who once mocked and persecuted the faithful, are struck with terror as they witness the glory that crowns those they once despised.
This is a message especially relevant for our time. In a world that scorns fidelity to Christ and traditional Catholic morals, we are told to “stand with great constancy.” The faithful may be mocked, isolated, or ridiculed as extremists, bigots, or fools even within the Church. But Holy Wisdom reminds us: the lot of the just is among the saints.
St. Alphonsus Liguori once wrote, “If we would save our souls, we must be resolved to suffer persecution in this life.” He reminds us that fidelity to God’s commandments and to the Deposit of Faith often brings suffering, but that suffering is never in vain.
Just as Our Lord was mocked and scorned during His Passion, so too the Mystical Body of Christ — the Church and her faithful members must share in that Passion before being glorified.
Gospel: John 4:46-53
"There was a certain ruler, whose son was sick at Capharnaum... Jesus saith to him: Go thy way, thy son liveth. The man believed the word which Jesus said to him, and went his way... and himself believed, and his whole house."
Reflection: Faith in the Word of Christ
In the Gospel, we encounter a royal official whose son is at the point of death. This nobleman, though surrounded by power and earthly influence, comes humbly to Christ. Jesus does not immediately go to the child. He simply says, “Go thy way, thy son liveth.”
And here lies the heart of the matter: “The man believed the word which Jesus said to him.”
He believed even without a sign, without visible proof. He simply trusted in the Word.
This man represents all those who choose to trust in Christ and His Church even when surrounded by doubt, suffering, or the silence of God.
St. Gregory the Great teaches us that “Faith is not to believe what we see, but to believe what we do not see; and the reward of this faith is to see what we believe.”
The ruler’s faith bore fruit not only was his son healed, but “he and his whole household believed.” One act of trust transformed an entire family. Such is the power of faith rooted in the Word of God.
This passage is especially poignant for Traditional Catholics today. When many are confused by doctrinal ambiguity and moral laxity we must hold fast to the Word of Christ handed down through Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition, just as our forefathers did. Believe the word He has spoken for it is living and true.
Saints of the Day:
Today, on May 12, the Traditional Roman Calendar commemorates:
1. St. Pancras (Pancratius), Martyr
A Roman boy of only 14 years who courageously suffered martyrdom under Diocletian around 304 AD. His youthful zeal for Christ inspired many. He is a patron of fidelity in youth and a reminder that sanctity is not a matter of age but of charity.
2. St. Nereus and St. Achilleus, Martyrs
Soldiers of the Roman army who converted and refused to renounce Christ, even under torture. They died for the faith in the first century. Their example strengthens us to fight the good fight in the army of Christ the King.
Their relics lie in the Catacombs of Domitilla in Rome, a silent but powerful testimony to the enduring glory of those “numbered among the children of God.”
Living the Scriptures Today
So what do these readings teach us today?
• When mocked or persecuted for holding to the traditional Faith — rejoice.
• When tempted to doubt God’s silence or the state of the Church — believe His Word still lives.
• When weary from the battle — remember the saints who went before you, crowned not on earth, but in heaven.
Let the world say what it will for the day will come when those who mock the faithful will see clearly, too late, the value of that which they derided.
As Wisdom tells us: “Behold how they are numbered among the children of God.”
Conclusionary Prayer
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
O Lord Jesus Christ, Eternal Word and Divine Physician, we thank Thee for Thy sacred teachings and the healing power of Thy truth. Grant us the faith of the nobleman, who believed without seeing, and the courage of the saints, who preferred martyrdom over compromise. May we stand with constancy amid affliction, knowing that our reward is not of this world, but with Thee and Thy saints forever. Through the intercession of St. Pancras, St. Nereus, and St. Achilleus, strengthen our fidelity and grant us final perseverance. Amen.
Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us.
Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us.
St. Pancras, St. Nereus, and St. Achilleus, pray for us.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.